Thoughts don’t have to be “real” or “true” to create failure or success in our lives. They just have to be believed.
Tim had always been weak in math. In high school, he had failed algebra (代数) three times before he eventually passed. Gradually, he began to accept it as an unchangeable fact. Then in college, the biggest problem that stood between him and his degree came in junior year— he had to take statistics, about which all the horror stories were circulating.
One day he was called into his professor’s office. Professor Fine, a short, stout man with thinning hair and a forever smile, sat on the front of his desk reading Tim’s record. “My son, this is your lucky day.” he looked up and repeated, “This is indeed your lucky day. You’re going to be great in stats (统计数据).” He had a huge smile on his face.
“How’s that, Doc?” Tim asked.
The professor shrugged. “You have the second kind of mind. Listen. First kind of minds are the kids who do well in algebra but don’t get stats. But second kind of mind is like yours. Kids who don’t get algebra understand statistics with no problem. They are different kinds of math that take different kinds of mind. Since you failed algebra three times, I’d guess you’d get an A in stats.” He raised his hands over his head.
“Really?” Tim asked, confused.
Professor Fine jumped to the floor and looked square (诚实的) in his eyes. “Really, and I’m happy for you. You never gave up, and now it’s going to pay off.” Then he shook Tim’s hand and slapped his back with great enthusiasm.
Tim was wild with joy at the news.
After that day, each time they met, there was a smile of approval on Professor Fine’s face and an enthusiastic handshake. Eventually, Tim began to tell his friends how well he expected to do in statistics.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
This unusual change in attitude affected all Tim’s grades.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________After the graduation ceremony, Tim went to professor Fine’s office.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Learning motivation only accompanied by interest can last long. My grandfather used to be the director of a local museum. So since I was young, I had the opportunity to visit various museums with him. After entering high school, I became interested in history, and I constantly collected information related to museums.
When I was 17, I read a magazine article about a museum called the McNay, once the home of a watercolourist named Marian McNay. She had requested the community to turn it into a museum upon her death.
Do not miss your chance to see Texas’ first modern art museum—the McNay Art Museum. There are more than 20,000 different and significant works. With beautiful Spanish gardens and the amazing architecture of the building, the art within the walls isn’t the only wonder to see.
On a sunny Saturday, Sally and I drove over to the museum. She asked, “Do you have the address?” “No, but I’ll recognize it, there was a picture in the magazine.”
“Oh, stop. There it is!”
The museum was free. We entered, excited. A group of people sitting in the hall stopped talking and stared at us.
“May I help you?” a man asked. “No,” I said. “We’re fine.” Tour guides got on my nerves. What if they talked a long time about a painting you weren’t that interested in? Sally had gone upstairs. The people in the hall seemed very nosy (爱管闲事的), keeping their eyes on me with curiosity. What was their problem? I saw some nice sculptures in one room. Suddenly I sensed a man standing behind me. “Where do you think you are?” he asked. I turned sharply. “The McNay Art Museum!” He smiled, shaking his head. “Sorry, the McNay is on New Braunfels Street.” “What’s this place?” I asked, still confused. “Well, it’s our home.” My heart jolted (震颤). I raced to the staircase.
注意：1．续写词数应为150左右；
2．请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
I called out, “Sally! Come down immediately!”
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Thirty years later, a woman approached me in a public place.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________A boy called Mike Duncan came into my school one morning in oversized hand-me-down clothes and worn-out shoes. He was a black-letter sight, standing at the front of our second-grade class. He shifted (转换) from foot to foot as our teacher, Mrs. Lydia wrote his name in the roll book. We weren’t sure what to make of the newcomer in worn-out clothes.
“Attention! This is Mike Duncan,” Mrs. Lydia said with as much enthusiasm (热情) as possible. Looking around and smiling, Mike hoped somebody would smile back. Although nobody did, he kept on laughing from ear to ear anyway.
Unfortunately, Mike had found a firm footing at the bottom of our school’s social ladder (阶梯) by the end of his first week. In fact he was pleasant to be around and was by far the most energetic boy I knew. After lunch each day, we joined forces to conquer (征服) the playground, moving from monkey bars to swing set to sandbox. As we lined up behind Mrs. Lydia for the march back to class, I made up my mind that Mike would remain friendless no longer.
I said one night as Mother pushed me into bed, “Mum, tomorrow is his birthday; and he’s not going to get anything. Mike’s mother worked all day in the orchards (果园) . His special day would go unnoticed.” “Don’t worry,” Mum said as she kissed me good night.
I wished Mike a happy birthday in the next morning; and his smile showed me that he was glad I had remembered. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a terrible day after all. By mid-afternoon I had almost decided that birthdays weren’t that big a deal. Then, as Mrs. Lydia was writing on the blackboard, I heard a familiar sound coming from the hallway.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
A voice I knew was singing the birthday song.
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Mike generously shared his cake with the class.
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I was not sure why my dad and my uncle always disagreed with each other in the beginning. They spent many Sundays sitting at opposite ends of the table, arguing about everything. I didn’t think they got along well.
When I was eighteen, I got a call in my college dorm that my dad was having a health problem. My mom picked me up at midnight, so I could be there the next day when my dad was scheduled to transfer(转移) to a better hospital. I didn’t sleep that night, not a while. I was nervous and almost crazy when we arrived at the hospital early the next morning before the transfer.
That morning, as my mom and I walked down the hallway of the hospital, we could see straight into my dad’s room. A tall man wearing a stylish suit stood beside my father’s bed with his back to us. In surprise, my mom said to me, “How nice it is for a doctor to come by to see your dad so early in the morning.” The man was quiet and still, looking down, but he was holding both of my dad’s hands in his own. It seemed not to be a typical doctor’s behavior.
“It’s not a doctor,” I whispered softly to my mom. When the man turned around, we found that it was my uncle. However, little did I know I would continue to reflect on that quiet moment for decades. And it would be the beginning of something truly wonderful.
The hours that followed were some of the most hardest time of my youth. My dad had a serious stomach problem and had to be in hospital for quite a long time. My uncle stayed with us the entire time. For one thing, my uncle tried every way to get my dad to eat something. For another thing, he brought me healthy snacks and made sure I actually ate them even though I had no appetite. When my mother and I were scared that my dad’s illness would get worse, my uncle was always by our side.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右;
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Throughout those difficult days in the hospital, I watched my uncle in a new light.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________From then on, the relationship between my dad and my uncle became closer.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The park bench was deserted as I sat down to read beneath a willow tree. It must be as sick, for the branches were kind of yellow and dry. I was a deserted girl. Endless quarrels with my parents had left me nowhere to go but this desolate (荒无人烟的) corner of the park. As I sat on the bench, things that happened recently began to flash through. Days seemed months to me recently. No cozy home to stay. No happy memories about my life. No considerate family members to talk to. Even the book I was reading was no fun. Not content with life, I had a good reason to frown, for the world was intended to drag me down.
And if that were not enough to ruin my day, a young boy out of breath approached me, all tired from play. He stood right in front of me with his head tilted (倾斜) down and said with great excitement, “Look what I found!” In his hand was a flower. What a pitiful sight, its petals (花瓣) were all worn—not enough rain, or too little light. He must have picked the flower from somewhere shady and sunless, just like where I was staying these days. I couldn’t help being self-pitying. Wanting him to take his dead flower away and go off to play, I faked a smile and then looked away. “Why couldn’t everyone just leave me be!” I thought to myself, upset and gloomy.
But instead of leaving, he sat next to me and placed the flower to his nose and declared loudly with certainty, “It sure smells pretty and it must be beautiful, too. That’s why I picked it; here, it is for you.” The “weed” before me was dying or dead, not vibrant with colors, orange, yellow or red—anyone having eyes can see that clearly! But I knew I must take it, or he might never leave. So I reached for the flower, and replied, “Just what I need.” Strangely, instead of placing the flower in my hand, he held it in mid-air without any reason or plan.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Casting a curious glance at the boy’s eyes, I was hugely shocked.
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“I had to make a change,” I thought to myself.
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I like staying overnight at my Gramma’s house — that is, until Gramma starts telling me how wonderful my cousin Maya is. Then it’s Maya this and Maya that until I don’t ever want to hear another word about her.
That’s why I wasn’t too excited when Gramma called me on the phone to “come on over and bring your pajamas.” When I got there, it was worse than I’d expected. There, in Grandpa’s big leather rocker, sat Maya, all dressed up and formal-looking and wearing fancy shoes as if she’d just been to a party.
“Surprise, Kristen!” Gramma said. “Your cousin Maya and her parents have traveled in from the East Coast on business. Maya gets to stay with us this afternoon.” Gramma chattered away about how excited she’d been for this surprise get-together, and how cousins ought to get to know each other better.
I hung my baseball cap in the closet and set my backpack by the stairway, all the time smiling and nodding as if I’d been waiting forever for this chance to spend an afternoon with Maya. Grandpa’s chair squawked (咯咯叫) as Maya rocked back and forth. It’s the chair I like best in the house, the one I usually sit in. I sat down on the sofa across from her.
Shortly, Gramma went off to the kitchen to “see about some lunch,” she’d said. That left me stuck in the living room with rocking Maya.
She was still small but taller than I’d remembered her from her last visit four years ago. She was good at small talk, though, and was chatting away about how nice it was to see me again. But I could tell that she didn’t really think so. The last time she was here, we’d had hours of fun together building caves out of Gramma’s sofa pillows.
After that, I’d heard about her only through Gramma’s tales. Maya taking piano lessons. Maya learning math. Maya, Maya, Maya. Now Maya was here, looking great with the latest haircut and a fancy dress.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Glancing down at my jeans and my old sneakers, I wished I hadn’t come.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________“How do you know all these things about me?” I asked.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________It was Friday, and I was at my daughter’s place in Manhattan. My husband and I had gone out for breakfast with my daughter and son-in-law and their child. After breakfast, we took a taxi to Central Park. The plan was to take my 2-year-old grandson on his first horse and buggy(小马车)ride，pick up our bags from my daughter’s house and drive to my friend’s home in Flatbush, Brooklyn, for a visit.
The horse ride went well, and we all had a great time. My grandson was filled with joy and excitement all the time. We arrived back at my daughter’s apartment, picked up our bags and then I said to my husband, Moishe, “Where is your phone?” Usually, I will check everything before we leave a taxi since things can fall out, but this time, I guess I didn’t, and we could not seem to find it.
Maybe we left it in the buggy, or it might have fallen out in the taxi? I wondered. Or perhaps we left it in the restaurant at breakfast? I was in a state of panic, wondering what the one with the phone could do with it. Moishe was evidently at a loss as to what to do. My sensible son-in-law, Leon, had a clever idea of calling the phone to see if anyone would answer it.
With butterflies in my stomach, I watched as Leon dialed and got through. He turned the loudspeaker of his phone on so that we all could hear but what we heard was a lady’s poor, broken English. The person on the other side of the phone obviously had difficulty communicating with Leon. Leon was very patient and was speaking very slowly but I could see that he didn’t get much useful information before he had to hang up.
After some discussion, we decided to send a text message to the lost phone saying, “We will pay money to get our phone back, please tell us where you are.” This idea worked out well. Soon we got a reply message saying “119 Ocean Parkway, Mrs. Hichens”.
注意：1．续写的词数应为150左右;2．请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
In no time, we all got into our car and headed for the address.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________With Laura’s help, Mrs. Hichens was able to explain to us what had happened.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________The yellow light flashed on my dashboard(仪表盘), showing the words: Maintenance Required. “I don’t have time for this,” I thought as I sped along the freeway. “I’ve got two jobs, and a family to take care of, dogs to feed and exercise to get in. When can I squeeze in a four-hour window without the use of my car?”
In fact, for days I drove with the light flashing. I felt exhausted, juggling(尽量兼顾)a new job that had me driving all over the city, eating in my car and carrying piles of files with me. I was drowning in my “to-do” and this “Maintenance Required” was putting me over the top.
The light now had my full attention. It was obvious that I was going to have to change my entire day. As a contract therapist(治疗师), I was only paid for the patients I saw, so canceling my appointments was going to cost me a lot, but so would ignoring the light. As I reached for my cell phone to call the office, it rang from the depth of my pocket. My patient called to cancel his appointment.
Therefore, I made it to the dealer’s in time to drop off my car. I had four hours to kill. I thought about waiting at the dealer’s, but that seemed like punishment. My car needed maintenance and so did my soul. I found out that the dealer offered a bus ride that could drop me at a mall. Although I had no love for shopping, I knew that the beach was about a mile from the mall. I had my sneakers, my iPod and my phone, so I set off on my adventure.
I discovered that everything, including waiting and distance, seemed shorter and closer when I mentally used the word “only”. It would only be four hours and I would have my car again.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
I plugged in my iPod and began to enjoy relaxing music from my yoga class.
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My phone rang.
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“No 7, Jobie Nymble, takes the lead,” cried the announcer. “Just one more hurdle (跨栏) and ...” Cheers broke out. “Jobie Nymble from Riverside Middle School takes first place in the girls’ 100-meter hurdles!” The crowd went wild.
“County championships (锦标赛), here we come,” screamed Jobie, patting her green track spikes (钉鞋). They were her lucky shoes and she loved them. “Next Saturday, we’re taking home the gold,” Jobie whispered to her spikes, excitedly retying them.
“Don’t forget, guys,” said Marisol, one of her teammates. “My birthday party is next Friday at Hidden Park.”
Next weekend couldn’t come soon enough. Jobie smiled with excitement all week long. At track practice, she leaped over those hurdles faster than she’d ever leaped before. And it wasn’t long before everything in her path was a hurdle: flowerpots in her front yard, sidewalk cracks on the way to the bus stop and even her little sister, Teka!
The day of Marisol’s party, Jobie put on her favorite outfit: her blue shorts, an old track T-shirt from her dad, and her lucky spikes. “Perfect.” She smiled at herself in the mirror.
The party was under way when Jobie arrived at Hidden Park. She stopped by the track first, planning to do some practice.
“Jobie!” Two of Jobie’s teammates rushed toward her, breathless and barefoot. “Come on,” they yelled. “You have to try the slide.”
Jobie looked toward the party area. Suddenly, she saw it. The biggest slide she had ever seen was on the far side of the park. Smiling kids zoomed down the slide at unspeakable speeds. Without thinking twice, Jobie took off her spikes and dashed (猛冲) toward the slide. Its ladder stretched to the sky, but she reached the top in no time, closed her eyes and let go.
Jobie couldn’t get enough. She tried again and again. When it was finally time to go home, she unwillingly made her way back to the track where she’d left her shoes.
续写部分：
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语以为你写好；
Paragraph 1：
As she eyed the area from a distance, panic set in.
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Paragraph 2：
The next day, Jobie turned up in a new pair of spikes for the championships.
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When I was young, the kitchen had an invisible“stop" sign put there by my mom. “No, you cannot enter here!” she always said to me. Well, I really don’t blame her as it is no place for kids.
I was just left outside in admiration, looking at what wonders the kitchen held. A few years passed by and I became very interested in food, both eating and preparing it. However, the kitchen was still out of bounds so I couldn’t experiment with cooking. But they couldn’t stop me forever now, could they?
It was early morning. Mom had gone for grocery shopping and no one else was at home. Time to strike! I walked through the dining room and there was the kitchen in front of me!
I stepped inside and took in the sight in front of me—cabinets (储藏柜 ) lining a wall, the oven (炉子) occupying the central place of another wall, the dishes sparkling like diamonds. I had seen it from outside but this time it was up close. As I hadn’t had breakfast, I decided to begin my first experience as a cook by making an omelette (煎蛋) . Sure I had seen Mom do it, so how could it be hard?
I searched the cabinets and finally found some eggs and onions. I knew the basics, so I began the work. I washed an onion first and then chopped it. Then came the egg. It took me two or three attempts to crack one open and into the bowl. I put the onion and some salt in the bowl too and mixed them. After that, I lighted the stove and put the frying pan on it and poured some oil in it... and poured some on the floor too, accidentally, of course! Till the pouring of the mixture into the pan, everything was going perfect—then I wondered what was used for turning the egg upside down in the pan.
注意：
1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Soon, I was running all over the kitchen, searching for the cooking spoon.
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While I was busy taking the burnt egg out in a plate, someone came up behind me.
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